Baxter Field | |
 | |
| Location | Gundurimba Road, Lismore, New South Wales |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 28°49′18″S 153°16′17″E / 28.82159°S 153.271524°E |
| Owner | New South Wales Government |
| Capacity | 1,500 |
| Field size | Left Field - 325 feet (99 m) Center Field - 380 feet (116 m) Right Field - 325 feet (99 m) |
| Surface | Grass |
| Construction | |
| Opened | 1960 |
| Renovated | 2002, 2020 |
| Tenants | |
| Lismore Timberjacks (Claxton Shield) | |
Baxter International Baseball Field or the Albert Park Baseball Complex is home to the Far North Coast Baseball Association (FNCBA), part of Baseball NSW, in Lismore, New South Wales. It is a fully fenced and regulation size field with field level fenced dugouts, bullpens, 4 batting cages as well as covered stands. Floodlighting is of international standard and has numerous Claxton Shield games since 1968.[1]
The field is part of the larger Albert Park complex, with several diamonds, and opposite to Baxter Field is Thew Field which serves as a playing field for juniors as well as a warm up and training field. It is also a regulation sized, floodlight field.
History
Baxter Field is named in honour of Reg Baxter, OAM (1924-2014),[2] Norths (Baseball Club) and FNCBA stalwart, and a former Lismore City Council Councillor who was tireless in his support for local sport (baseball, cricket and softball) and instrumental in upgrading the facilities at Albert Park.[3]
In 2020, a $6.95 million upgrade was completed to redevelop the complex to become the Little League centre of Australia.[4]
In 2021, the Sydney Blue Sox announced they would be playing at least one home series against the Canberra Cavalry at the facility in lieu of being able to play at Blue Sox Stadium due to Blacktown falling in a COVID-19 pandemic hotspot. It is the first Australian Baseball League games at the complex since 2012 when the Blue Sox were hosted by the geographically closer Brisbane Bandits.[5]
The facility will also host the Australian Baseball League All-Star Game in 2021–22.[6]
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References
- ↑ Far North Coast Baseball Club History Archived 20 August 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ↑ "Minutes of the Ordinary Meeting of the Council of the City of Lismore, Tuesday 12 August 2014". Lismore City Council. 12 August 2014. Retrieved 29 July 2019.
- ↑ Mortimer, Luke (14 August 2014). "Mateship shines through as Reg Baxter farewelled". The Northern Star. Retrieved 21 July 2019.
- ↑ 7 MILLION DOLLAR GRANT BOOSTS LISMORE’S POSITION ON THE MAP Baseball Queensland
- ↑ Craig, Mitchell (8 August 2012). "Lismore plays ball". Fraser Coast Chronicle. Retrieved 20 January 2021.
- ↑ Swanton, Will (18 January 2021). "Lismore plays ball". The Australian. Retrieved 20 January 2021.